The recently concluded LinkShare Symposium West revealed a recent study on a new online consumer personality, the “recession shopper.”
This type of shopper has emerged as the country’s economic outlook continues to be bleak. According to the study, these shoppers have said they will spend more money online, compared with their online spending last year, should their economic situations deteriorate.
And according to study results, to engage these consumers, retailers need to offer special promotions and coupons, as they are heavily influenced, and even swayed, by these tools.
In its research, Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates, Inc. (PSB) found that hardcore online shoppers, termed “weekly shoppers”, can be influenced by coupons and discounts, but so, too, can a new consumer segment PSB discovered called “recession shoppers” – those who will shop more online if their personal economic circumstances deteriorate. Specifically, the study found that:
- 68 percent of “recession shoppers” (and 79 percent of “weekly shoppers”) purchased something online they wouldn’t have otherwise because of a coupon or discount.
- 64 percent of “recession shoppers” (and 70 percent of “weekly shoppers”) said they purchased something from a particular online retailer they wouldn’t have otherwise because of a coupon or discount.
More on “recession shoppers” in LinkShare’s press release.